The Copper Princesses recorded a narrow 2-1 win in the first leg of the first leg of their 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Qualifiers 3rd Round.
Phidah Muzuwa with the winner after Precious Mwewa’s opener was cancelled out by Mihiret Abebe.
Zambia started strong but had to wait until the 14th minute to open the scoring, Precious Mwewa putting the hosts in the lead with a fine finish.
Zambia continued to pile pressure but it could not result in a second goal. The visitors restored parity four minutes to the break with Mihiret Abebe scoring a beautifully taken free kick.
The match went to the break level at 1-1. Kanyemba made changes at the restart with Phidah Muzuwa and Phodia Mwiinga coming on for Faith Kajiya Kapilingo and Fridah Ndashe respectively.
Muzuwa needed just nine minutes to make an impact, heading home a beautiful cross from the left wing to put Zambia back in the lead.
Zambia held on to win the match and will carry a narrow lead into the second leg.
The second leg is set for next weekend in Ethiopia. The winner over two legs will qualify for the global showpiece
The Copper Princesses are looking to secure a third World Cup qualification having made it to the 2024 and 2025 editions.
The tenth edition of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup will take place in Morocco from 17 October to 7 November 2026, with 24 sides set to battle it out to be crowned as global champions.
2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Qualifiers 3rd Round, First leg | Full-Time
Zambia 2-1 Ethiopia
(Precious Mwewa 14′, Phidah Muzuwa 54′ | Mihiret Abebe 40′)
